By Andrew Knittle
Even though a number of cities have shelved or greatly reduced Christmas decorating plans deemed too costly to justify in a recession called the worst since the Great Depression, the City of Norman chose this year to keep its tradition alive by decorating the city in a holiday theme.
Just like it has for the past several decades.
There are artificial wreaths hanging for miles up and down Main Street. City Hall is all spruced up. And Legacy Trail is all lit up like, well, a Christmas tree.
Just like it always is.
Other cities with long-standing holiday decorating traditions haven't been as lucky this year. Reports in the news abound.
In Chicago, the city's Christmas tree is only 56 feet tall. In 2008, the tree was nearly 100 feet tall. That decision saved $750,000.
In Orlando, Fla., $250,000 was saved by cutting out part of its decorating efforts.
Hit hard by the recession, Fresno, Calif., canceled its tree lighting ceremony because the city was broke and couldn't justify spending the money.
So, is Norman any different? Should it have canceled its decorating efforts due to the recession?
Anthony Francisco, the city's finance director, confirmed that revenue sources for the city are down. Have been for the past six months, he said.
But Francisco said he never heard anything about not decorating Norman this year.
The reason for that may be that Norman doesn't have extravagant costs. No $1 million tree to buy every year.
Parks and Recreation Director Jud Foster said his crews were tasked with setting up the holiday decorations around the city's core area, but that spending was minimal. Almost nonexistent.
"The wreaths along Main Street we already owned, we bought them a few years ago," Foster said. "And the displays along Legacy Trail were mostly paid for by local businesses.
"We didn't really have to buy anything this year."
Even the well-known Christmas tree in Andrews Park, made of so many strands of lights, is achieved on the cheap, Foster said.
"Our maintenance guys basically built the whole thing -- the base and the poles and rings -- with materials that were lying around," he said. "We just had to buy the lights, and we've had those a few years."
And whatever costs there are, Foster said those are worth it to the city. An employee of the City of Norman since 1979, he said it wouldn't seem right not to have the holiday decorations up just to save a few bucks.
"I think people would miss it for sure," Foster said, adding that downtown hosts a number of annual events, including Winterfest, this time of year. "I think people enjoy coming down to the area during the season and looking at all the lights when they're at those events.
"I know I'd miss it if they weren't there."
Andrew Knittle 366-3540 aknittle@normantranscript.com
